The Weltmer Institute was
located at the southwest corner of Austin and Ash Streets
(later home of Milster Funeral Home but razed in 2005) in
Nevada. It was founded by Sidney A. Weltmer who was
described as a professor, hypnotist, healer, and mystic. The
seal for the Weltmer Institute indicates that it must have
been founded in 1887. Old postcards and ads refer to it by
different names: "The Weltmer School of Magnetic Healing",
"The Weltmer Institute of Suggestive Therapeutics", "The
Weltmer School of Healing", but usually just "The Weltmer
Institute".

The motto of the Institute
was, "Where every known disease is cured without medicine or
surgery".

Two of the post cards that I
have from the Institute contain notes written by
patients:

March 13,
1909

"Dear Friend, I
thank you a thousand times for telling me of Prof. Weltmer.
When I came here last June, I had nearly lost my mind. I was
having terrible headaches. My right eye was totally blind.
The Specialists said I would lose the other and would not
even operate. After six weeks here, the cataract just simply
disappeared and I have been using my eyes steadily every
since. I am perfectly well. They cure everything here. I
never saw such a place.

G. H.

October 1,
1910

"This is a
picture of my place. It was full when we got here so we have
to room two blocks from it. Last week I seemed lots better.
This week not so well. Up and down you see. I like
Nevada.

Mrs.
C.

The Institute was so
successful that extra trains to Nevada were added. At one
time, the Institute did an amazing number of treatments by
mail. In fact, so many requests were being made that Nevada
had to build a larger post office. The Institute operated
until 1928 according to Betty Sterrett. However, I received
an email from Mrs. A. Ansari and she told that she has a
letter written to a Weltmer patient on April 28,1933 that is
postmarked Nevada. This causes me to question Mrs.
Sterrett's 1928 date. Perhaps 1928 is when the institute
left the Milster building? Certainly by the 1920's, there
were lawsuits over the Weltmer "treatments".

Reference:

Sterrett, Betty. "Scenes
from the Past". Compiled by Donna Logan.1985.

Click
here to read some
letters written to an Iowa family from the Weltmer
Institute.

Postcards from Lyndon Irwin
collection.

Click here to see a nice photo
and diploma of Weltmer Graduate, Anna Leonard, 1903.